Freedom Investment Management Inc. Trims Position in Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW)

Freedom Investment Management Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW) by 11.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,007 shares of the electronics maker’s stock after selling 1,266 shares during the quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Corning were worth $476,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Corning by 76.7% in the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 523 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares during the period. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in Corning during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Asset Planning Inc bought a new stake in shares of Corning during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton grew its position in shares of Corning by 202.4% in the 4th quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 747 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. Finally, Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Corning in the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.80% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Corning

In other news, COO Eric S. Musser sold 30,000 shares of Corning stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.92, for a total transaction of $1,557,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 152,944 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,940,852.48. The trade was a 16.40 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael Alan Bell sold 2,209 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.87, for a total transaction of $110,162.83. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Corning Trading Up 0.5 %

Corning stock opened at $41.50 on Monday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $46.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $47.69. Corning Incorporated has a 52-week low of $31.20 and a 52-week high of $55.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The company has a market cap of $35.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 71.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.03.

Corning (NYSE:GLW) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The electronics maker reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.01. Corning had a net margin of 3.86% and a return on equity of 15.10%. Analysts predict that Corning Incorporated will post 2.33 EPS for the current year.

Corning Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.70%. Corning’s dividend payout ratio is currently 193.10%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on GLW. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Corning from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Corning from $58.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Corning from $53.00 to $52.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. StockNews.com cut Corning from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Mizuho set a $52.00 target price on Corning in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $53.31.

Corning Company Profile

Corning Incorporated engages in the display technologies, optical communications, environmental technologies, specialty materials, and life sciences businesses in the United States and internationally. The company's Display Technologies segment offers glass substrates for flat panel displays, including liquid crystal displays and organic light-emitting diodes that are used in televisions, notebook computers, desktop monitors, tablets, and handheld devices.